Driving licence for life?

[Lutin]

Maybe not after a proposal by the EU - EU considers end to lifelong driving licences

MEPs are debating whether to force motorists to pass medical exams if they want to keep their driving licences in the EU.

The proposal has sparked outrage in France, the European Union's second-largest economy, despite already being the case in more than half of all EU states.

More than 20,000 people die every year on the EU's roads, while around 160,000 are seriously injured.

Some European Parliament members believe changing the rules will help lower those figures, and make roads safer across the 27-member bloc.

MEPs propose that motorcycle, car and tractor drivers get a medical check every 15 years, while bus and truck users would have to seek a doctor's green light every five years.

Green MEP Karima Delli said the law "is not intended to annoy", and that the medical checks would be "free" and "simple".

Wonder if the UK will follow suit?

[porter_jamie]

Well, had to get a medical and an eye test for the acu licence. And I was only out on track with other racers. My dad is now over 80 and his driving wasn't great 10 years ago. Really need something to stop doddery old bastards and wankers who refuse to go get glasses and so on. Apart from the fact they will fuck up the implementation I don't have an issue with it.

[Bustaspoke]

UK lorry drivers already have to take a medical at age 40 & every 5 years after that until I think age 65 then it's a annual medical.It won't affect me anymore as I've retired & have no intention of sharing the roadspace with fuckwits whilst steering a 44 ton artic ever again .
I've long believed that if I get to rule the country all road users would have to do a refresher course & medical every 5 years.
It'll never happen,but maybe in a parallel universe

[DefTrap]

Surprised / not-surprised that the French are up-in-arms about it. Not surprised because the French moan about everything - they're probably primed for a riot as we speak. Surprised because they go to Les Docs for everything (my sons had to go every year for Le GP to sign them off to play competitive youth sports for example), so it's not as if there isn't a precedent sort of.

French driving is shocking, and ffs they let people drive around in those terrible 'ped-powered noddy cars when they are banned or incapable of driving a normal car. So maybe this would take a lot of the -really- terrible ones off the road

[Noggin]

The French will revolt purely because someone is telling them what they have to do (will probably have to do!!)!! Like the bike MOTs - surely it can only be good to have your bike checked like you would your car, but not if it is someone telling you you HAVE to follow this new rule


I had to have a medical (basically, can you see and stand up straight, oh, and use the FUBAR arm well enough to drive) to get the 'yellow card' to allow me to drive paying passengers.

I'll have to have another medical when I do the bus licence.


Personally I think that everyone should have to have an eye-test at the bare minimum every 2 or 5 years after they pass a driving test. We all know eye sight can change quite fast (I was under the legal limit for a few years before I was tested and told I should have be wearing glasses to drive) so why wouldn't you want to get that checked?


As DefTrap says, the French are pretty shocking drivers anyway, so anything that helps keep the legally blind off the roads (at the bare minimum!) would be a bonus - although I'm sure the legally blind will join the ranks of the young, old, incapable and drunk and just get 'noddy' cars (although only the rich ones cos the cars ain't that cheap and the insurance - if they bother with it - is definitely not cheap!!)

[Hot_Air]

Wonder if the UK will follow suit?

I hope so.

[Mr Moofo]

Maybe not after a proposal by the EU - EU considers end to lifelong driving licences

MEPs are debating whether to force motorists to pass medical exams if they want to keep their driving licences in the EU.

The proposal has sparked outrage in France, the European Union's second-largest economy, despite already being the case in more than half of all EU states.

More than 20,000 people die every year on the EU's roads, while around 160,000 are seriously injured.

Some European Parliament members believe changing the rules will help lower those figures, and make roads safer across the 27-member bloc.

MEPs propose that motorcycle, car and tractor drivers get a medical check every 15 years, while bus and truck users would have to seek a doctor's green light every five years.

Green MEP Karima Delli said the law "is not intended to annoy", and that the medical checks would be "free" and "simple".

Wonder if the UK will follow suit?

The best thing to do would be stop Belgians driving - that will see a swift reduction in deaths

[Bustaspoke]

The best thing to do would be stop Belgians driving - that will see a swift reduction in deaths

I've never heard anyone say anything positive about Belgian driving standards,it's a bit of a concern as I'll be in the Ardennes in June

[Count Steer]

The best thing to do would be stop Belgians driving - that will see a swift reduction in deaths

I've never heard anyone say anything positive about Belgian driving standards,it's a bit of a concern as I'll be in the Ardennes in June

Can't say I ever noticed*. City driving was like city driving in most places, you had to be a little, erm, positive at times etc. Main thing I remember out in the sticks was a pleasing lack of traffic. On the major routes it was NL plates towing caravans loaded to the gunnels with everything needed for the holiday (in France). This usually include 6 boxes of chocolate sprinkles and many boxes of cereal on which to sprinkle 'em. Them clogging don't like spending money in forrin parts.

* Which might say more about my driving/riding than theirs.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

How bad are the French at driving if British people think they're bad?

[wheelnut]

How bad are the French at driving if British people think they're bad?

Which countries have you been to where you think the drivers are safer than the British?

They probably exist, but I doubt there’s many.

[Yorick]

How bad are the French at driving if British people think they're bad?

Which countries have you been to where you think the drivers are safer than the British?

They probably exist, but I doubt there’s many.

The drivers here are much more chilled. Never hear a horn beeping. Folk are happy to wait a bit and very courteous.

[mangocrazy]

The French are a damn sight more aware of motorcyclists than their UK counterparts, and will get out of the way to allow filtering. At times it's like the parting of the Red Sea filtering through traffic.

But Belgians... are just the worst. Clueless, totally unobservant, no road manners and plain dangerous to be around.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

How bad are the French at driving if British people think they're bad?

Which countries have you been to where you think the drivers are safer than the British?

They probably exist, but I doubt there’s many.

Errrm parts of the USA possibly.

[Scootabout]

IMO French driving standards have improved greatly during the past 20 years or so. Perhaps this is due to better enforcement of drink-driving rules, I don't know. I find the level of driving courtesy to be quite high. The only real exception is tailgating, which is still a bad national habit. And maybe les Savoyards are different...

[wheelnut]

How bad are the French at driving if British people think they're bad?

Which countries have you been to where you think the drivers are safer than the British?

They probably exist, but I doubt there’s many.

Errrm parts of the USA possibly.

Possibly the parts of the USA that have a very sparse population, but the USA overall has one of the highest rates of road deaths per capita in the world.

[Le_Fromage_Grande]

I haven't driven abroad since 2005, so my views might be somewhat hat stand.

[JackyJoll]

More than 20,000 people die every year on the EU's roads, while around 160,000 are seriously injured.

Some European Parliament members believe changing the rules will help lower those figures

The medical condition of drivers is not the cause of those deaths and injuries.

[Cousin Jack]

I am one of the old buggers this is aimed at, and it's not a bad idea BUT.........

It will never happen, far too expensive and a very real vote killer.
If it were done, in typical UK style, the Civil Service would gold-plate it and have a list of 73 ailments that would disqualify you. I probably have half a dozen and would not be a happy bunny.

[Count Steer]

Us old codgers can get a free regular eye test and have to renew our driving licence. Can't see why an application shouldn't include submission of the test results (or an automated link...they seem to link lots of stuff via the NI number already).

IIRC my dad had to get an 'OK to drive' note from his doctor. (Although it seemed to be little more than a 'How are you doing? conversation - he really should not have been behind the wheel in his 90s, but he'd have topped himself if he'd been forced to give up).